Sunday, July 16, 2017

From baby oil and baby soap to baby powder and diaper rash cream, there are so many products that come into contact daily with our children’s skin. And when they get older, there’s sunscreens, body wash, shampoos and conditioners, lotions – even when these products are marketed specifically toward our little ones, how do you know if they’re safe?A tiny amount of a harmful chemical in a skincare product might give you or me a rash, but on a smaller, more sensitive body, the effects can be a lot worse.

Have you checked out the ingredients on that diaper rash cream tube?BHA, parabens, fragrance– no thank you. And that Johnson’s bottle of baby oil, the main ingredient of which issynthetic mineral oil,a byproduct gasoline distillation? I’d like thatfaraway from my little one’s skin.

I mean, how hard can it be to find something safe, non-toxic, effective and soothing for my children’s skin and at bath time? Something where the ingredients aren’t just “safe” because they haven’t been researched enough, but are actually proven to nourish? Luckily, you just have to look in the right place! Beautycounter has a fabulousline of products for babies and kids. The ones I’ve tried are so gentle and effective!

Ever since I started using Beautycounter products for Qman, I’ve felt a huge sense of relief. It’s so reassuring to know exactly what’s in the products we use as a family. I love knowing that the products that we intend to be beneficial (i.e. sunscreen) ARE actually healthy for him. And the products are so fun to use that he actually enjoys getting lathered up before we head outside. Hey, pale skin! Qman calls calls the Face Stick his “tiny kid sunscreen.” So cute!

I hope you find these to be as helpful for your family as they’ve been for mine!

RESEARCH OF THE WEEK

Preformed vitamin D, the kind found in eggs, fish, and meat, is about 5 times as bioactive as vitamin D3. This makes animal foods a rich source of vitamin D and may explain why human skin lightened after the adoption of agriculture—so they could replace the vitamin D they no longer got from hunted meat.

NEW PRIMAL BLUEPRINT PODCASTS

Episode 177: Dr. Loretta Breuning: Host Elle Russ chats with Dr. Breuning about her research into the best way to manage these crazy neurochemicals we’ve inherited from our ancestors.

Each week, select Mark’s Daily Apple blog posts are prepared as Primal Blueprint Podcasts. Need to catch up on reading, but don’t have the time? Prefer to listen to articles while on the go? Check out the new blog post podcasts below, and subscribe to the Primal Blueprint Podcast here so you never miss an episode.

This past winter, California storms destroyed the only road leading into and out of a small community in Big Sur, forcing residents to hike everywhere. You’ll never guess what happened to their health.

THINGS I’M UP TO AND INTERESTED IN

Facebook live event I’ll be doing: Hang out with celebrity nutritionist, Primal Kitchen Cookbook contributor, and Body Love author, Kelly LeVeque, as she takes a deep dive into her health and wellness journey with me and Primal Kitchen COO, Morgan Buehler, on July 21 at 11 AM Pacific.

Success story I’m digging: Andrea Boyer took her health on a 180º with Primal principles after being diagnosed as pre-diabetic and with Celiac. Today she’s loving life and coaching others to take back their vitality.

COMMENT OF THE WEEK

“Mice eating their bones – that’s self-sufficiency!”

– You reminded me of something, Catherine. The day I turned 18, my parents kicked me out of the house. One of the most important first steps I took on the road to self-sufficiency was to start consuming my own hair and fingernails for extra protein.

Aaron Adams knows a thing or two about making vegan food taste delicious. That was certainly my conclusion after eating at Farm Spirit, his dinner club style restaurant located in Portland, Oregon. At a cozy, 14-seat counter, he and his chefs prepare and serve a series of small dishes, featuring produce, grains, and nuts from local farms — none of which are more than 105 miles from the restaurant. By the end of the meal — up to 13 courses in all — you might imagine you’d have to roll home. Not so. Aaron’s light touch leaves you feeling satisfied, not over-stuffed. What’s more, there’s a lovely smug feeling that comes with consuming what might just have been one of the healthiest meals of your life. Recently, I had the chance to ask him about what inspires his ultra-healthy cooking style, and how home cooks might up their vegan game.

Healthy Eats: How long have you been eating vegan and what inspired you to make the change?

Aaron Adams: I’ve been a vegan for 12 years now. It wasn’t an overnight thing. At the first restaurant I owned in Jacksonville, Florida, I started out by serving foie gras! But the more I learned about the practices involved, the more I couldn’t stomach it. After taking foie gras off the menu, I started asking more and more questions of my purveyors. I even took my cooks to a slaughterhouse to see what the animals went through to get to our restaurant! Eventually, I decided that I couldn’t ethically serve meat anymore and I shut down the restaurant.

HE: Do you think that vegan diets are healthier?

AA: Yes! I’m a big guy and I had high cholesterol and high blood pressure before going vegan. I got those numbers way down and I lost 100 pounds. Now, I actually have very low cholesterol. I can’t conclusively say that it’s the healthiest diet for everyone, but it’s been a healthier way for me to eat. And it’s definitely better for the environment!

HE: What do you do to stay fit?

AA: I do power lifting 4 days a week and I’m on a power-lifting team. I can bench press 300 pounds, and deadlift 500. A lot of people say you can’t get enough protein to build strength from a vegan diet, but I say ‘hogwash!’ Besides eating vegan ‘mock meats’ I drink smoothies made with pea protein. Pea protein is the best for weight lifting because it doesn’t have too much fiber — it’s also great stirred into a pancake or waffle batter.

HE: Before you opened your latest restaurant, Farm Spirit, you owned another restaurant called Portobello Vegan Trattoria. What’s different about the new place?

AA: With Portobello, we wanted to create a restaurant that was vegan but would also be accessible to non-vegans. We went with Italian because most people have an idea of what Italian food is. We also liked the spirit of Italian cuisine with its emphasis on fresh, local ingredients. Ultimately, I opened Farm Spirit because I love doing small plates and tasting menus, and I wanted to focus even more on local ingredients. Farm Spirit is really hyper-local cuisine. But it’s not just about being local, it’s about creating a new cuisine with a bio-regional identity. We are really serving a modern interpretation of ‘Cascadian’ food — the food grown and enjoyed in the Northwest.

HE: Can you share a secret tip for making vegan food delicious?

AA: One thing people can do to add dimension to vegan food is to use the power of fermentation. That will give any dish you make a more complex flavor, not to mention adding in healthy probiotics. I like to say that fermented foods fill in the flavor gaps. We use a lot of nut yogurts at the restaurant for this purpose. We also ferment Hakurei turnips and purée them to make a sauce with a wonderful acidity to it. Then we take that purée and fold it into sautéed vegetables. That’s something you can do at home, too, by whizzing up some sauerkraut in a blender with some of the brine and a bit of oil. You can then use that to dress all sorts of vegetables. Really, anything you can do to add brightness to your food — acidic ingredients like lemon juice or vinegar — will help make the flavor pop.

HE: What do you think are some of the biggest misconceptions about a vegan diet?

AA: I always say that people who have had a bad vegan meal hold onto that experience too hard. I mean, they’ve had thousands of bad omnivorous meals, but they still keep going back for more, right? Part of the problem is the concept. What even is the definition of vegan food? To me, it means having a meal that is purposefully free of animal products. People object to vegan diets because they think it means they have to give up something. I say, stop worrying about having choices taken away from you, and think more about making healthy choices for yourself and the environment. For people who live in communities with good access to ingredients, it’s really not necessary to eat meat. I would never say you should feel guilty about not being vegan. If you’re poor or live in a food desert or have kids to feed, it might not be an option. But for many people, it’s just not that difficult.

HE: What is your favorite lazy-man dinner to cook at home when you’re short of time?

AA: At home, I use more convenience products, I’ll admit it. I’ve been cooking all day! I cook vegan burgers, or make a salad and top it with a vegan ravioli and a nice tomato ragú. Probably the dinner I eat the most at home involves sautéing up a lot of different colored veggies — whatever I have on hand — like peppers, carrots, squash or whatever’s in season, along with some tempeh. On the side, I’ll have a baked potato. Another yummy meal my wife came up with is Asian tacos. We pick up some steamed bao buns at an Asian market and serve them stuffed with BBQ tofu and a spicy slaw of cabbage and carrots dressed with a Sriracha lime-mayo.

HE: What vegetable doesn’t get enough love, in your opinion?

AA: I always say that kohlrabi is that veggie you let rot in the bottom of your CSA box or produce drawer. People just don’t realize what you can do with cruciferous veggies, like kohlrabi, cabbage and cauliflower. They are so savory, particularly when roasted.

HE: Favorite season of the year for cooking?

AA: The next one! I’m just excited about what’s happening next. If I had to say, I would pick Spring. When I see that first asparagus I get pretty emotional. The winter stuff is running out by March, but there’s hardly anything fresh to eat yet. When the nettles and Miner’s lettuce show up at the market, I think ‘We made it!’